The pan-European STOXX 600 index fell sharply on Friday, showing the strongest daily drop since February (0.9%). Its losses last week were the largest since January, reaching 1.2%. This was facilitated by comments from representatives of the Federal Reserve, demonstrating their loyalty to tight monetary policy, as well as exceeding forecasts statistics on employment in the United States, reports the agency "Prime".

The number of jobs in non-farm industries in March increased more than expected, which increased fears about the Fed's plans for the key rate - positive macro statistics may serve as a reason for the regulator to postpone its reduction. Concerns were reinforced by the statements of the Fed members in support of tough conditions. An additional negative factor for the stock exchanges was the growth of yields of European government bonds.

At the end of trading German DAX decreased by 1.30%, British FTSE 100 - by 0.81%, French CAC 40 - by 1.11%.